Just in time for the fall elections, Tony Award-winning San Francisco Mime Troupe skewers a system which puts the actual needs of the voters last with a new musical comedy, Red State.

The Troupe will perform at the Chabot College Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, September 24 beginning at 6:30 p.m. with music by the Troupe band. The show will begin at 7 p.m. Admission is free, but donations are encouraged. This performance is the only opportunity to see the Troupe perform in the Hayward area and the last show of the year in the Bay Area.

"The San Francisco Mime Troupe is anything but silent theater," said Kip Waldo, Chabot College instructor. "It is loud, funny, and irreverent, with live music and it's the country's best-known political theater."

In this election year, the play will prove to be an enjoyable experience as well as provocative and thought-provoking. The show, "Red State" follows a small town, which has found itself at the forefront of a political fight. It's Election Day in small town America, and that's what happens when, due to an Electoral College tie, the entire Presidential Election comes down to the one tiny town. Suddenly, the ignored, disregarded Bluebird, Kansas is the most important town in America. And they are being pressured to quickly cast the deciding vote, and vote the "right way." But what would happen if they decided to wait?

Rather than the pantomime that might be expected of a "mime" troupe, the San Francisco Mime Troupe is a group of satirists who strive to get a laugh from the audience over the absurdities of contemporary life and the burning issues of our time.

The event is co-sponsored by the Associated Students of Chabot College, Aspire, Students for Social Justice and Staff Development. More information about the San Francisco Mime Troupe can be found on their website at www.sfmt.org/index.php.